(Peru, Neb.) – For what is believed to be the first time in 20 years or more, the Peru State men's basketball team has started a season with five consecutive wins.
 
The Bobcats topped another 'Cat – that being the Wildcats of Baker – 81-74 Tuesday night in Baldwin City, Kan.
 
Peru State improved to 5-0 overall and are now 2-0 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart). The Wildcats fell to 3-5 on the season and are winless in the conference against three losses.
 

First Half Action
 
A trey by DeMon Hyler (Kansas City, Mo.) at the 19:23 mark started the scoring for the Bobcats. A Wildcat trey tied it before KeShawn Wilson (Lincoln) hit a bucket in the paint to put Peru State back on top.
 
With 10:41 to go in the first 20 minutes, Peru State had its biggest lead to that point after Brandon Jones (Houston) hit a bucket in the paint off an assist from Nicholas Wurm (Adelaide, Australia) to make it 18-12.
 
Baker would fight back to tie it at 24-24 with 5:05 on the clock. Isaac Simpson (Papillion) would get a bucket on an assist from Jones to break the tie which put the Bobcats in the lead for good for the rest of the half.
 
A three-pointer by Deonte McReynolds (Chicago) off an assist from Wilson put the Bobcats up by 11 at halftime at 39-28.
 
Second Half Action
 
The Wildcats would pull the contest back to five at 42-37 after the first two minutes.
 
A trey by Wilson on an assist from Hyler was followed by a three-pointer by Lyle Hexom (Omaha) on assist from McReynolds which put the Bobcats back up by double digits at 48-37 with 15:49 on the second half clock.
 
With 13:27 left in the game, McReynolds nailed another trey and the Bobcats had their largest lead of the game at 16 leading 55-39 at that point.
 
But, the Wildcats would not go away. Baker would outscore Peru State 20-4 over the next five-plus minutes to tie the game at 59-59 with 8:02 left in the game. The Wildcats would go on to lead by as many as four at 67-63.
 
With 4:50 left in the contests, another trey by Hexom, on an assist from Hyler knotted the game at 69-69. Baker would respond by making one of two free throws to regain the lead at 70-69.

 
At the 4:07 mark, Hyler would hit a three-pointer on an assist from Hexom and the Bobcats would not trail after that point.
 
Peru State would lead by seven at 79-72 with 30 seconds left and would eventually win by the same total.

BAKER GAME BOOK
 
Team Statistics
 
Peru State actually shot better from the floor than the Wildcats, but struggled a little at the free throw line. The Bobcats made 31 of 68 field goals for 45.6% which included making 12 of 30 from three-point range for 40%. At the charity stripe, Peru State made just seven of 14 for 50%. Baker connected on 26 of 62 field goals for 41.9% and made ten of 30 treys for 33.3%. At the free throw line, the Wildcats made 12 of 14 for 85.7%.
 
The Wildcats held a slight edge in rebounding as they grabbed 41 boards compared to 39 for the Bobcats. Peru State more than doubled up the Wildcats in assists as the Bobcats handed out 18 compared to just seven for Baker.
 
Baker committed 14 turnovers while Peru State finished with ten. The Bobcats blocked six shots while the Wildcats finished with four. Peru State also added seven steals while Baker finished with two steals.
 
Peru Individual Statistics
 
Five Bobcats finished in double figures in scoring and were led by Hexom who had 18 points. Wilson added 17 while Jones contributed 16. McReynolds added 15 and Hyler finished with ten.
 
Jones finished with a double-double as he grabbed a game-high ten rebounds. Hexom just missed a double-double as he had nine boards. Both Hyler and McReynolds each finished with five rebounds.

 
Hyler had a game-high six assists with Jones handing out four. Hexom had a game-high five blocks with Simpson being credited with the other block.
 
Jones had a game-high four steals with Hyler adding two more.
 
Upcoming Contests
 
Peru State will play a non-conference game on Saturday, Nov. 24, when they host the Concordia Bulldogs – a NAIA DII opponent – at 4 p.m. The Bulldogs are now 5-3 on the year having defeated Waldorf (Iowa) Monday night for their fifth win of the season.
 
Then, on Monday, Nov. 26, the Bobcats will be hosting Graceland (Iowa) at approximately 7:30 p.m. The Yellowjackets also have started the season 5-0 and are 1-0 in the Heart. Graceland will be playing a pair of NCAA DII opponents over the Thanksgiving weekend in Gunnison, Colorado.